A sudden disturbance

"Let's check near the construction site first." Kakashi made the decision immediately.

The group followed the coastline toward the construction site. The closer they came to the sea, the stronger the cold, sinister presence in the air grew. Lin Chen narrowed his eyes slightly and spread out his Spirit Vision-like perception. He could clearly see clumps of black mist lurking deep along the beach-Low-Level Cursed Spirits, slowly growing stronger on the villagers' fear.

Beside the coastal rocks lay a half-buried, badly damaged sailing ship of peculiar design. Its hull was long and narrow, its planks long since soaked black by seawater. A blurred skull was carved into the bow, with two crossed bones beneath it. The style was rough and savage, nothing like the shipbuilding designs of any nation in the Shinobi World.

"That's the strange ship that washed ashore." Tazuna pointed into the distance, his voice tight. "Nobody dares go near it. Anyone who does has nightmares."

Kakashi signaled for everyone to wait where they were and went ahead to investigate alone. He circled the wreck, then dug several yellowed scraps of paper out of the ruined cabin. The paper was made of a special material, waterproof and resistant to decay. It was covered in crooked, unfamiliar writing, interspersed with several nautical charts marked with place names he had never heard before, such as "Grand Line" and "Reverse Mountain."

The writing on the final page was a chaotic scrawl, as though written in a panic: "Space distorted... ocean currents suddenly changed... off course... invisible monsters dragged three people away..."

The writing stopped abruptly there.

Kakashi held the scraps, his brows tightly knitted. Grand Line? Reverse Mountain? No such places had ever existed in the waters of the Shinobi World's Five Great Nations. This was no foreign merchant caravan at all. It came from a world he had never heard of.

Standing behind him, Lin Chen swept his gaze over the wreck as system notifications rang out in succession.

[Ding! Origin imprint of the Pirate Plane detected!]

[Available for plunder: basic seafaring talent, trace insight into Armament Haki, seagoing shipbuilding experience!]

[Ding! Residual Cursed Energy from the Jujutsu Plane detected!]

[Available for plunder: beginner Spirit Vision, trace Cursed Energy Affinity, resistance to negative emotions!]

He did not act immediately. Under the pretext of examining the surroundings, he slowly walked around to the other side of the wreck and quietly touched the planks with his fingertips.

An invisible devouring force spread silently, seeping through the wreck. The Pirate Plane's Origin imprint on the hull and the residual Cursed Energy permeating the air were all drawn out and absorbed into his body, like rivers flowing into the sea.

[Ding! Plunder successful! Acquired basic Armament Haki insight, beginner Spirit Vision, and Cursed Energy Affinity!]

[Physical resilience slightly increased. Ordinary Cursed Spirits are now visible. Resistance to negative energy increased!]

A warm current flowed into his body through his fingertips, slowly merging into his muscles, bones, flesh, and blood. Lin Chen could clearly feel that his physical strength had risen another level. His vision had also changed subtly-the black mist of Cursed Energy floating in the air was now clearer, and even the Cursed Spirits' movements were plain to see.

More importantly, the basic insight into Armament Haki merged into his combat instincts, giving him an entirely new understanding of how to use energy. If he combined Armament Haki with Chakra, his close-combat strength could rise another level.

"Roar-!"

Just then, the sea suddenly erupted!

A Mutated Sea Beast over three meters long burst out of the water. Its entire body was covered in pitch-black scales, with a fish's head, a humanoid body, and razor-sharp claws. Faint traces of Cursed Energy and Seastone emanated around it. It was unmistakably a marine creature contaminated by energies from two other planes. It opened its gaping, bloody maw, a foul-smelling sea wind blasting toward them as it lunged straight at Sakura, who stood at the front.

"Watch out!"

Kakashi snapped back to his senses, his hands forming seals so quickly they left afterimages. "Water Release: Water Dragon Bullet Technique!"

A roaring water dragon surged out and slammed into the sea beast. But the expected heavy damage never came. The scales on its body actually deflected most of the water dragon, while the strange black mist neutralized much of the remaining force.

"The Ninjutsu's effect was weakened?" Kakashi's pupils contracted.

Sasuke immediately flung several shuriken. They struck with metallic clinks, unable to leave even a scratch on the scales. Naruto tried to rush in for hand-to-hand combat, but the moment he approached, he felt the Chakra throughout his body turn sluggish, slowing his movements by half a beat.

"What the hell is this monster?!" Naruto was both shocked and furious.

Ordinary Ninjutsu was far less effective, and getting close meant having one's Chakra suppressed. This monster's abilities were practically a perfect counter to the ninja system.

Just as Kakashi was about to activate his Sharingan and confront it with all his strength, a slender figure slowly stepped forward.

"Let me."

Lin Chen's voice was calm as he stepped in front of the others.

Facing the Mutated Sea Beast lunging at him with claws bared, he raised a hand. An invisible devouring force erupted from his palm.

[Ding! Locked onto Mutated Sea Beast!]

[Available for plunder: Seastone Resistance, underwater breathing talent, mutated beast physique!]

[Ding! Locked onto attached spirit: Low-Level Cursed Spirit!]

[Available for plunder: Cursed Energy fundamentals, fear-devouring talent!]

[Critical multiplier: fourfold!]

Two devouring forces activated simultaneously, like two enormous invisible nets instantly enveloping the sea beast and the Cursed Spirit inside it.

The sea beast abruptly froze in mid-lunge and let out a piercing howl. The hard scales covering its body rapidly dulled. The Seastone energy within it, its Cursed Energy, and even the Origin of its mutated physique were draining away at a furious rate.

In just two seconds, the sea beast, over three meters long, visibly shriveled and fell back into the sea with a splash, utterly lifeless. The Low-Level Cursed Spirit hiding inside it did not even have time to struggle before it was devoured completely, leaving not a wisp of black mist behind.

The shore instantly fell deathly silent.

Naruto's mouth hung open, and he could not close it for a long while. Sasuke's clenched fists froze in midair, his eyes filled with shock. Sakura covered her mouth, nearly crying out.

Even Kakashi was stunned.

A monster that would have been difficult for me to handle even at full strength, and Lin Chen dealt with it just by raising his hand?

And from beginning to end, he had not been able to discern what power Lin Chen had used. There were no hand seals, no eruption of Chakra. It was as though the monster had inexplicably died at a mere thought.

Such a method had long since surpassed the bounds of Ninjutsu.

"That's dealt with." Lin Chen withdrew his hand, his expression calm, as though he had merely stepped on an ant.

Kakashi took a deep breath, suppressing the turmoil within him, and asked gravely, "What exactly was that power you used?"

Lin Chen gave him a bland glance and replied casually, "A special method for dealing with spirits. I happened to learn it some time ago."

With one offhand sentence, he brushed aside every question.

Kakashi stared at him for a long time, but ultimately did not press further. He knew that even if he asked, Lin Chen would not tell him the truth. This young man held more secrets than all of Konoha's secret scrolls combined.

As the night deepened, the group settled into a small house near the construction site.

In the shadows of the dense forest in the distance, Zabuza carried the Kubikiribōchō on his shoulder, its cold gleam flashing in the moonlight. Haku stood beside him and said softly, "Mr. Zabuza, that power this afternoon was strange. It wasn't Ninjutsu, and it wasn't a Kekkei Genkai."

"Who cares what it was?" Zabuza's voice was cold and hard. "Gato paid us double to guard the 'special cargo' at the docks. We kill whoever gets in the way."

He did not know that the special cargo Gato spoke of was contraband from other planes that had drifted through a spatial rift. Those objects tainted with Cursed Energy and Seastone were the true source of every strange incident in the Land of Waves.

Inside the house, Lin Chen sat cross-legged beside the window, watching the faintly flickering light of the spatial rift above the sea.

The system's notification sounded again:

[Ding! Myriad Worlds Fusion continues to deepen. More energies, creatures, and even individuals from other planes will seep into this world!]

[Opportunity and danger levels are rising in tandem. Host, please build up your reserves as quickly as possible!]

Lin Chen gently tapped the windowsill with his fingertips, a trace of anticipation flashing in his eyes.

Danger?

Before the Plunder System, every danger was nourishment delivered to his door.

Zabuza's Silent Assassination and Kubikiribōchō, and Haku's Ice Release Kekkei Genkai, were merely appetizers in the Land of Waves arc.

Haki and Devil Fruits from One Piece, domains and Cursed Spirits from Jujutsu, and even the legacies and bloodlines of still more planes-those were the real feast.

He looked up at the deep night sky, the corners of his lips lifting slightly.

The curtain on Myriad Worlds Fusion was finally about to rise in full.

And he had long since been ready to plunder it all.